http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog en Copyright 2012 2012-01-17T15:22:57+00:00 http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/super_vivere_opens_in_wolverhampton/ http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/super_vivere_opens_in_wolverhampton/#When:15:22:57Z It was great to be in Wolverhampton last week to install Super Vivere at its second location. The gallery is a wonderful space and probably best described as a mini Tate Britain, housed as it is in a majestic old building with a very striking contemporary extension.  The exhibition space lies between the Georgian and Victorian galleries in the original building.  These spaces are full of portraits and artefacts by and of celebrated figures from the Midlands, so the faces of my older subjects, though a contrast, look strangely at ease in their new home.  A big thank you to all the staff at Wolverhampton, in particular the lovely Helen Oliver whose help and guidance was invaluable and the fabulously innovative technical team, who got us out of a few installation pickles.   A visit to the gallery is well worth the trip generally.  Their exhibition line up at the moment consists of a Willie Doherty retrospective (review from me to come), 'Troubled Land' by Paul Graham, and 'Olympic Posters: Pop and Publicity' which is a fabulously colourful display of posters from the ill fated 1972 olympics in Munich.  So, I am in very good company.  But if the art isn't enough to tempt you, the cake in the Gallery Cafe should, as it is unfeasibly good!  I also had two delicious Bengali meals at Bilash Restaurant, which is situated a stone's throw from the gallery.  If you want a proper curry, The Midlands is where it is at! A few pictures of the show in situ, though unfinished, taken very quickly on my phone:         2012-01-17T15:22:57+00:00 http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/super_vivere_at_wolverhampton_art_gallery/ http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/super_vivere_at_wolverhampton_art_gallery/#When:11:40:55Z I am pleased to say that the preparations for the tour of Super Vivere are going well and the brochure for the exhibition has now gone to print.  The show will be travelling to Wolverhampton early in 2012 and opening on 14th January.  The team at the gallery have been enormously supportive and I am really looking forward to seeing it in situ in such a wonderful space right in the heart of Wolverhampton.  A sneak preview of the brochure poster is included below.  2011-12-12T11:40:55+00:00 http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/arts_and_older_people_public_showcase/ http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/arts_and_older_people_public_showcase/#When:20:04:59Z It was a pleasure working with Upper Springfield Road Development Trust on this public showcase event.  The Andersonstown Barracks Site came alive with community arts project installations which were inspired or created in collaboration with the older people living in West Belfast.  Artwork included a knitted tree and a wall of wax memories!  It was a fun afternoon of work.   2011-11-10T20:04:59+00:00 http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/christian_louboutin_new_mens_store_paris/ http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/christian_louboutin_new_mens_store_paris/#When:09:28:33Z I took a trip to Paris last month to shoot the new Christian Louboutin Men's Store on Rue Jean-Jacques Rousseau. It is the first men's boutique in the world and it is a wonderful space. The shoes are of course effortlessly cool, so get in the starting blocks chaps, because it is going to be busy busy busy!   2011-10-26T09:28:33+00:00 http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/fireplace_glamour_antique_fireplaces_ireland_shows_off_its_new_stock/ http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/fireplace_glamour_antique_fireplaces_ireland_shows_off_its_new_stock/#When:19:09:15Z Antique Fireplaces Ireland is the place to buy a period fireplace. They have all sizes to fit all houses and they do just that.  And you couldn't find a nicer couple of chaps to sell them to you either than Messrs. Ryan and Smith.  I headed down to Stewartstown in Co. Tyrone for a couple of days a few weeks ago to take some images of their new stock for website and brochure use.   2011-10-25T19:09:15+00:00 http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/christian_louboutins_fabulous_pieces/ http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/christian_louboutins_fabulous_pieces/#When:18:43:47Z Christian Louboutin's Fabulous Pieces: The New Window in Mayfair is a tribute to heels and hair and beautiful ladies.  It is as imaginative and eye catching as ever.  I love that the dark haired beauty looks a little like Joan Collins, but my absolute favourite is the georgeous auburn belle on the right with her green shoe tiara!     2011-09-18T18:43:47+00:00 http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/christian_louboutin_fashion_night_out_2011/ http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/christian_louboutin_fashion_night_out_2011/#When:13:09:57Z The team at Christian Louboutin know how to throw a party and this was no exception.  In the true spirit of London's Fashion Night Out event, Louboutin on Mount Street opened it's doors to their special customers for an evening of preening, cocktail drinking, and smoozing.  It was fashion fabulous and full of exceptionally glamorous Louboutin lovers.  Thankfully, my fashionista credentials weren't in focus, but it was very fun capturing the pros in their element!      2011-09-18T13:09:57+00:00 http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/the_bishops_palace_waterford/ http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/the_bishops_palace_waterford/#When:19:49:11Z The Bishop's Palace in Waterford is now home to the city's Museum of Treasures Collection which celebrates the ethnic, cultural and religious diversity of all who contributed to the making of Waterford, Ireland's oldest city.  I drove south to shoot the newly opened and magnificently restored building for Antique Fireplaces Ireland who helped with the restoration project.  Designed in 1741 by the famous Anglo-German architect Richard Castles (known most famously for Leinster House in Dublin, the seat of the Irish Parliament), the building is an elegant early Georgian design with simple lines and wonderful high ceilings.  It was a lovely space to shoot and full of Waterford history.  Worth a visit if you are visiting the area!   2011-07-25T19:49:11+00:00 http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/hannah_starkey_ormeau_baths_gallery/ http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/hannah_starkey_ormeau_baths_gallery/#When:15:51:29Z Hannah Starkey is a Northern Irish born artist and one of the most important photographers of her generation. Her images capture moments of quiet drama; ambiguous scenes which leave the viewer questioning the context of the event unfolding in the frame. What struck me as I wandered through the exhibition was its composure. Starkey is there in every photograph, still and ever present.  But, she is not a detached voyeur, she knows the women she is photographing – they are all women – and she is at one with them. Whether autobiographical or not, we feel her empathy and the psychological journey she has taken in making each image. The exhibition incorporates five pieces created in Northern Ireland, including two new works commissioned by Ormeau Baths Gallery. The Northern Irish works, interestingly, are subtly different from the rest of the show. I felt there was a slight nervousness which was absent in her other photographs.  And, I wondered (or perhaps hoped) if she feels, as I feel, that photographing Northern Ireland is difficult. The conflict is always there whether you want to capture it or not and seeing something new is hard. The pieces, however, are very successful. For my own part, I quite like that they show a flicker of apprehension in an otherwise seamless show.  For more information on the exhibition follow the link to the Ormeau Baths Gallery.  Until 9th July 2011 2011-06-11T15:51:29+00:00 http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/louboutin_trunk_event_at_coutts1/ http://www.susierea.com/index.php/blog/article/louboutin_trunk_event_at_coutts1/#When:09:57:29Z The new Christian Louboutin winter collection is really lovely.  Reds and blacks and taupes are plentiful.  The collection is elegant, sophisticated, and as always unique.  The trunk show was held in a fabulous room at Coutts Head Office with antique wallpaper and wonderful period pieces - the perfect backdrop for the star attraction...shoes!  Oh and some gorgeous gorgeous bags which I am coveting.  2011-06-01T09:57:29+00:00